“The joint pain became unbearable. I couldn’t open doorknobs, do my makeup, or write my name without pain. My legs were so swollen I couldn’t wear shoes.”
‘Your body is attacking itself.’ On the outside, I looked like a normal 27-year-old.’: Woman shares lupus diagnosis
‘I dug out my resume, blew off the dust. As I read through the skills, I started to panic.’: Mom shares importance of forming good habits, being your ‘own champion’
“I decided to return to work, no faith in my abilities.”
Dear Mom, I Had No Clue Being A Mother Was So Tough
“I don’t know how you did it, but you did. And I am choosing to pay it forward for my kids.”
‘Do unto others as you would like done unto you.’ I am the sole enforcer of that rule.’: Woman on self-love journey shares random acts of kindness
“I finally began to work on myself. And that’s hard. Looking in the mirror and being honest about the ways you can grow is daunting.”
’My mom is away on business,’ I’d say, as I undressed her and threw her into the shower.’: Daughter loses mom to addiction, rheumatoid arthritis, ‘I want to make her proud’
“My mom endured higher and higher doses of medicine. I remember joking to the doctor, ‘If you gave her elephant tranquilizers she’d take them.’ She couldn’t stand.”
‘You’re EXACTLY what your baby needs.’: Mom of 6 gives parenting advice, ‘We still have much to learn’
“One and two kids are like learning to drive a clutch. Three and four start feeling more like cruise control. Five or more: well you’ve let go of the wheel, and asked Jesus to take it.”
A Letter To The Person Without A Positive Mother Figure This Mother’s Day
“You were simply chosen to be strong.”
‘Kelly, something happened to your mom. There’s nothing they can do.’ My world was rocked.’: Woman loses mom at 19, says ‘becoming a mom has been healing’
“My child will never experience the deep love and pride a maternal grandmother can give. They’ll never know the sound of her laugh, the warmth of her hugs.”
‘I was at work when I noticed a strange feeling and excused myself to the restroom. In shock, I found crimson red trickling down my legs.’: Mom births preemie rainbow baby with autism
“I went to stand up, and blood poured down my legs and all over the floor. I remember almost fainting; my husband called 911 and an ambulance rushed me to the emergency room. To our surprise, we saw a baby bouncing around on the screen of the ultrasound. The doctors were baffled.”
‘Will we ever be matched again?’ From that day forward, I’ve never celebrated Mother’s Day without grieving first.’: Adoptive mom facing infertility shares journey
“I had no idea patients admitted for hysterectomies stay in the maternity ward. It was a sick comedy. Anyone who entered the room congratulated me and asked if it was a boy or girl.”
‘I felt a tug at my heart. ‘Everyone who wants kids SHOULD be able to experience this!’: Mom of 3 girls becomes surrogate, ‘I’m one proud surro-mama’
“I was at an age where many of my friends were trying for a baby. I became aware of infertility and felt yet another tug at my heart.”
‘I faced the choice of buying food or affording diapers. It’s a lonely place to be.’: New mom thanks local baby bank for donating supplies
“My situation was a living nightmare. We wanted to give her the basic things every baby should have, like a soft toy. We simply couldn’t afford it.”
‘She was there for every single contraction. She reminded me to breathe. She held me when I felt like crumbling.’: Woman says being a doula is ‘making friends for life’
“I had my daughter at home, unmedicated, in a birth tub in my living room.”
‘Today on our daily run a little girl yelled, ‘May I pet your puppy?’ from outside the funeral home. ‘My daddy died today.’: Woman and her pitbull share touching act of kindness for grieving girl
“She wrapped her arms around Blue’s neck and wouldn’t let go. She then jumps up and says, ‘I want you to meet my Daddy!!! Can you please come meet him??’ As I looked around, there wasn’t a dry eye to be found.”
‘In front of the entire train, he pointed at me and shouted, ‘Look at that freak!’ I broke down into floods of tears.’: Man with cystic hygroma shares self-love journey
“‘You don’t look like the other boys. You look different.’ I was sick of giving power to strangers. It was time to take back control.”
‘Adult-sized shoes are piled by the front door where their bikes used to be. I blinked. That’s it. Our boys, they are men now.’: Woman thanks ‘wolfpack of mom friends’ as all-grown-up son’s graduate
“Have we done enough? Did we cheer loud enough? Will they always remember we were their biggest fans no matter what? Man, I hope so.”
As We Approach Mother’s Day, Reflect On What Moms Accomplish On A Daily Basis
“I am not just a mother. I am an accountant, employee, housekeeper, teacher, nurse, chef, coach, therapist, and keeper of secrets. And I can guarantee you, we feel it’s never enough.”
‘Did she feel guilty abandoning me in a parking lot? Did she wonder about me? For the first time in 30 years I thought, ‘I have to find her.’: Adoptee reclaims identity in search for birth family
“I was born due to an (assumed) affair and shipped off for money. Sold. A cover-up due to embarrassment of my father’s mistakes. For the first time in 30 years I thought, ‘I have to find her. I have to find my birth mother.'”
‘What am I doing wrong?’ It had been hours since she last nursed. She must have been starving.’: Mom shares breastfeeding journey, ‘A fed baby is a happy baby’
“I tried to feed him, but he’d just cry and scream or show no interest at all. I felt like I was failing for the second time.”
‘I wish we could do something to spread hope and cheer.’: Family paints kindness rocks to spread love during lockdown
“Like throwing rocks into a pond, we hoped this would create a ripple effect.”
‘This is your baby’s way of waving a flag.’ Our whole world came crashing around us.’: Grieving mom welcomes rainbow baby
“I didn’t want to get up out of bed. I couldn’t function. All I wanted now was to be a momma on earth. I wasn’t interested in anything else.”
‘I bawled my eyes out as I paid for my groceries. ‘I’m failing as a mom.’ I felt so useless, alone.’: Postpartum depression warrior starts mission to spread kindness
“One day, I chose to sit outside in a park during my lunch break. A stranger complimented my new bag. It was such a little thing, but it shifted something within me.”
‘When I was face to face with someone, it popped up. ‘I want to kill you.’ It tortured me.’: Woman with OCD urges ‘you don’t have a bad brain’
“I had to keep washing my hands until they were chapped and bleeding. I couldn’t stop until the ‘bad thoughts’ ceased.”
‘The doctor said he tested positive.’ I stared at my baby’s sleeping form with guilt.’: New mom raises awareness for sickle cell anemia
“After days of tests, he had lost weight and had bruised heels. I thought it was a death sentence. He didn’t deserve this.”
Body Image Issues Freakin’ Suck, But You Don’t
“Exciting adventures like vacations, poolside hangouts, any night out that begs for you to squeeze into some tight pants or a dress become stress-provoking and unfun. They take what could be your joyful and carefree attitude and turn you into a self-conscious, body-obsessed, judgment-fearing butterball of anxiety.”